look for a recommendation

[kooner]

i have a 93 crownline 196 br with the 5.0 lx and a 4 barrel. the outdrive is a 1.50r and im currently running a turbo 20 pitch stainless prop. the prop has seen better days. it was on the boat when i bought it a couple months ago but id like to replace it. it doesnt exactly handle the way i would like it to but im not sure its got anything to do with the prop other than it hasnt been taken care of an now its beat up. has anyone else had turbo props? what r your experience with them? at WOT im running right at 4500rpms which puts me 100rpms away from the top of where i should be. the cover on the engine say i should be at a max of 4600 rpms. most of the time its just my wife and myself so im looking for a 21 pitch SS prop to put on it that im not going to break the bank on. id prefer not to have an interchangeable hub as i feel like that is going to cause me some headache at some point in time. does anyone have a similar setup an have any recommendations? i plan on having the turbo thats on it rebuilt and repitched to a 19 for towing eventually but id like to do it during the winter so my boat isnt down for the short amount of time we have left to use it this season.

 

[Chris1956]

Gee, it is hard to find a SS prop without spending several 100 $. I like the Rapture style props. They have good rake.

 

[kooner]

i dont mind spending a few hundred i just dont wanna get to crazy and end up spending $5-$600 on one if i can get a good quality prop in the neighborhood of $3-$400

 

[Chris1956]

Are you dead set on SS? If you hit bottom often on hole shot, and the bottom is sand/muck/silt, SS is probably mandatory. If you don't hit bottom, aluminum could be acceptable. If you hit rock bottom, nothing will work.

You are likely locked into a modular hub, as most/all are now.

Turning Point makes a good aluminum "Hustler" prop. It is similar to a Rapture in design.

 

[kooner]

id like to stick with a SS. 50% of the time im gonna come close to bumping on silt. the other half im going to be in 20+ feet of water. i boat at multiple different lakes.. ive seen the solas and michigan wheel and a cpl stilletos i just dont have much experience with these brands. ive heard good and bad on all of them. i had a michigan wheel aluminum on a previous boat and never had any issues but i just wanted to hear some more opinions on those brands or maybe another brand i havent come across. maybe it doesnt really matter on brand?

 

[kooner]

ive also seen the turning point props just havent herd much about them. good or bad

 

[porscheguy]

Many Mercury props are also sold under the Quicksilver brand for significant reduction in price. What kind of speeds are you seeing with your current prop? I assume you wish to increase the speed since you want to step up to a 21P. Your boat is about the same size as mine. I've got a Wellcraft Eclipse 196. 1990. 4.3l. I've got a 21P Mercury Mirage Plus that I bought barely used. I've also got a 23P Quicksilver Lightspeed which is a Laser 2. The Lightspeed is faster, but the boat feels loose. The Mirage gives up a few MPH, but it has vice like grip. I plan to keep my eyes open for a Mercury Tempest/Quicksilver Torrent 23P.

The Laser2 is meant for lightweight bass boats. The bass boat part isn't as important as the lightweight part. It's under 14" in diameter.
The Mirage Plus is meant for heavy high powered boats. It's almost 15" in diameter.
The Tempest/Torrent is meant for larger bass boats. Again, ignore the bass boat part. It's around 14.5" in diameter.

All three have high rake and high cup. The most obvious difference is diameter. The rest of the stuff is splitting hairs.

If you're referring to the flo-torq II as an interchangeable hub, there's no reason to think they'd cause headaches. They're not very expensive, and just about any place that sells Quicksilver parts will have them in stock should the need arise.

FWIW, The Lightspeed cost me $300 last month, brand new. It was discontinued and I think the retailer just wanted it off the shelf. The Mirage Plus was slightly used. I found it sitting on top of a soft drink cooler at the marina behind some other used props. No rust or nicks. $250. I've seen the Torrent for $375.

 

[QBhoy]

Throw a Laser 2 19" on her...all in the world will be well !

 

[kooner]

Many Mercury props are also sold under the Quicksilver brand for significant reduction in price. What kind of speeds are you seeing with your current prop? I assume you wish to increase the speed since you want to step up to a 21P. Your boat is about the same size as mine. I've got a Wellcraft Eclipse 196. 1990. 4.3l. I've got a 21P Mercury Mirage Plus that I bought barely used. I've also got a 23P Quicksilver Lightspeed which is a Laser 2. The Lightspeed is faster, but the boat feels loose. The Mirage gives up a few MPH, but it has vice like grip. I plan to keep my eyes open for a Mercury Tempest/Quicksilver Torrent 23P.

The Laser2 is meant for lightweight bass boats. The bass boat part isn't as important as the lightweight part. It's under 14" in diameter.
The Mirage Plus is meant for heavy high powered boats. It's almost 15" in diameter.
The Tempest/Torrent is meant for larger bass boats. Again, ignore the bass boat part. It's around 14.5" in diameter.

All three have high rake and high cup. The most obvious difference is diameter. The rest of the stuff is splitting hairs.

If you're referring to the flo-torq II as an interchangeable hub, there's no reason to think they'd cause headaches. They're not very expensive, and just about any place that sells Quicksilver parts will have them in stock should the need arise.

FWIW, The Lightspeed cost me $300 last month, brand new. It was discontinued and I think the retailer just wanted it off the shelf. The Mirage Plus was slightly used. I found it sitting on top of a soft drink cooler at the marina behind some other used props. No rust or nicks. $250. I've seen the Torrent for $375.

currently at WOT with the beat up turbo 20 pitch on it full trim with a little ripple to the water my speedo reads out at about 52-54MPH.. with my wife and i in the boat yes i kind of want the speed. that way when im cruising im not burning alot of fuel and my cruise speed is nice at around 30-35 MPH. then when i want to play i can listen to that 4 barrel sipping twenties down and im actually getting some where then :eyebrows: but most of all my prop is terrible at low speeds and it gives my wife a hard time when shes loading the boat. maybe thats the design of the hull not so much the prop and i know for sure some of that is from people who dont know what no wake means.

 

[QBhoy]

Must say, the laser 2 19" sounds ideally suited. Many people run them on the 17-19ft bowriders. I haven't heard of any bad results yet. Great props.
The Merc website does refer to the laser 2 being ideal for lightweight bass boats, but that will be the laser 2 model designed for outboards with the smaller gearcase. Those come in even pitch sizes. The laser 2 I refer to is for the alpha 1 and big v6 outboards and come in odd sizes.
I can gaurentee that the Merc prop selector would list the laser 2 as one of the ideal props for, after you enter all your details. I gained 7mph over the standard black max ally prop on my 18ft bowrider. Diameter is as near as damn it to each other, but laser lifted to boat so much higher out the water and gained a few rpm too.

 

[Leardriver]

The extra 100 RPM that you are missing could be explained by the condition of the prop, if it is beat up bad enough. The 19 pitch will make the boat more fun to drive, but if the last mile or two of top end speed is important, a nice condition 20 is probably worth 1-2 more mph than a 19.